But One of Many
by OtakuLady
Summary: Yuuri has dreamt of cold, scared, lonely twins, and so, set out to rescue them. How will the fabric of time be altered by this choice, and how will the twins cope with a loving home? AU, yaoi in later chapters. Dedicated to Kali Cephirot!
1. Chapter 1

(A/N) This story was actually written by Kali Cephirot, who, in all of her infinite awesomeness, allowed me to perform a continuation of it! So, I decided, in tribute to her awesomeness, to leave the first chapter the exact same way she put it up! This is the first chapter, and I'll upload the second within the next few days, so check back!

**But One of Many**

**Pairings: **Yuuram, KuroFai, and SyaoSaku. ^.^ Also, a little bit of GwendalGunter, and some hints of JosakConrart.

**Warnings:** Homosexuality, I.E. Yaoi! XD Also, AU-ness, and some really awesome plot ideas!

**Description:** Yuuri dreamt of lonely, scared, hurt children… And he couldn't just LEAVE them that way! So, he rescues the children, and instead, raises the twins with love and care! What will happen next?!

**Disclaimer: **I own neither Kyo Kara Maou, nor Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. Though… I would LOVE to have Watanuki as my servant. xD

**But One of Many – Chapter One –**_A midwinter's dream…_

It´s the twelfth time in less than two weeks that he wakes up from the same nightmare, half freezing and trembling bad enough that he has woken up even Wolfram, worrying him rather than annoying him.

"I'm sorry," Yuuri apologizes, accepting the glass of water Wolfram gives him, looking up as Conrad walks inside. "It's just _so real..._"

"What is it about, Yuuri?"

"There's a boy... or maybe two, I'm not sure," Yuuri answers Conrad, frowning a little. "I think two... one is in a tower and the other one is surrounded by bodies and they're cold and suffering and..."

And then he shivers, fighting tears because the boys had been hurting so badly and they were so thin and it hurt to know that, it hurt so much to know how scared they were. Wolfram's hand is warm on his back for a momen and Yuuri does his best to control himself.

"But it's just a dream, right?" Wolfram asks, frowning.

Conrad humms a little, thoughtful.

"I don't know. I thought it was, at first but I keep dreaming of these kids..." Yuuri one hand against his eyes, as if he could stop the images he has been having nightmares about, but they seem tattooed to his eyelids, impossible to get rid off, not while those children are suffering.

"We should bring this with the Great Sage," Conrad says finally. "And with Ulrike. They might now if this is an omen of some sort."

"Can we go now?" Yuuri asks. It's so late that it's even early, but he can't wait. He needs to know why he's dreaming about those two children and if they're suffering he needs to find a way to help them.

"Your dreams seem to be real, your Majesty," Ulrike informs him, sad and low, her eyes full of sorrow. Murata keeps his arms crossed and looks thoughtful.

Yuuri is broken hearted. "What? You mean... those children are really suffering through that?"

He really had hoped that it was some kind of symbollic dream, something that wouldn't make those things he had seen not real.

Ulrike nods. "I believe you are reacting to that place and those children wishes."

"But why?"

"That's not important!" Yuuri interrupts Günther from making anymore questions, Gwendal frowning. "The thing is, we have to save them!"

"It's not that simple, Majesty," Conrad starts, but Yuuri interrupts him too.

"Yes it is! I'm not going to let them like that! They're starving and alone and cold and they're not even together!"

"Are they here in this world, Yuuri?" Wolfram asks then, serious. "In human territory? Are they mazoku?"

"I..."

"Those children are not from our world," Ulrike says, showing her crystal ball. Smoke gathers around it, hard and thick, and Yuuri feels frustration build up.

And then, Murata who had been standing off to the side, pushes his glasses up and grins, lazy and serious and with a hint of 'this is gonna be gold' and 'crap'.

"Well, I do know the Dimensional Witch, y'know," and then he sighs. "It's just not gonna be cheap."

"Well, it's been a while, Sage," the woman that speaks through the mirror says.

She's as beautiful as Cheri-sama, with dark, dark hair flowing down her back, her expression somehow similar to Murata's and yet different.

Murata grins and bows. "That, it has been. Have you been well, Yuuko-san?"

"I can't complain," and then her red eyes are focused on him and Yuuri tries to ignore the feeling of having seen her before, clenches his hands not to hide. "King Yuuri. You have a wish, I presume?"

"Yes," Yuuri swallows and explains his dreams, the wish to save those children no matter what.

The woman is silent for a long, long while and Yuuri does his best to keep on looking at her, even though the expression in her eyes seems to be burning down every single little doubt he has ever had. Then she takes a drag of whatever it is she's smoking, and the smoke curls away from her mouth and the mirror and it crosses over to them. Yuuri feels himself surrounded, but somehow knows this won't harm him.

"Would you really pay the price to be able to get there?"

"Yes," there is no doubt in his voice.

"Anything?" There's a drawl in Yuuko's voice, almost like a smirk. Yuuri is sure he has heard it before, somewhere, but he can't focus on that right now.

"If it's something I, Shibuya Yuuri, can give, then yes."

And then Wolfram hits him, right on the head.

"OI!"

"What this idiot of a king wants to say," Wolfram says, as if he hadn't just cuffed him. "Is that we'd like to know the price first, and then I'll also help with it."

"Wolfram..."

"Well, if you're going to bring more children here, I'll have to get involved, won't I?" Wolfram says, haughty and huffing, but there's a soft dusting of pink on his cheeks that makes Yuuri smile, just a little.

"I as well would like to help to pay the price," Conrad says, bowing. Günther, and then Gwendal, also agree to helping, and Yuuri feels so much for these people that he could break down and cry.

There's something that seems pleased about the woman, and Murata's eyes seem hidden behind his glasses. But before Yuuri can ask, a crystal orb appears through the mirror, floating towards him.

"Each of you, touch it for a moment," Yuuko says, her voice serious. "It will extract exactly one eight of your maryoku, enough so that the way to the world you saw may open exactly twice and no more, but be aware that by opening the way, the shield that had been protecting your world might not be the same again."

"I will protect this world, no matter what happens," Yuuri says, firm.

Yuuko nods her head softly.

"Lord Weller, I will need five drops of your blood upon the water."

As Yuuri picks up the orb, he closes his eyes and thinks – those children, so alone and sad and then he thinks of water and then there's this _pull_... he staggers for a moment, right unto Conrad's arms as he takes a deep breath, his blood rushing and part of him panicking and...

"I'm fine," he says, doing his best to stand up straight. "I was just not expecting it."

He offers the ball and Wolfram mutters a 'wimp' before he takes it: Yuuri sees him go pale and he feels the maryoku as if it was going to attack and then it's quickly contained, two balls – red and blue – inside the orb. Gwendal picks it up next, and his maryoku seems green inside before Günther takes it, and then Murata is taking the orb again, offering it towards the illusion of the witch.

"The price has been given. Now, Majesty," Yuuko adds with a soft smile that eases whatever dreariness he had felt before. "Step unto the water, if you'd please, and think about the children."

Yuuri nods. He's still a little shaky after the loss of maryoku, but then he closes his eyes and pictures the blond hair and the thin faces, the ragged fingernails and he feels just sad and angry and--

--Cold, very cold as he realizes that he's in the cell he saw, and the little boy he had seen is pressing against a wall, his eyes wide as he trembles in fear.

"W-who... who..."

Yuuri kneels down and smiles. He wishes the witch had given him more warning: he would've brought jackets or coats or something.

"My name's Yuuri," he tells the kid, trying to make his voice sound as soft as he can. "And I'm here to take you and your brother somewhere else."

"My..." and that makes the boy react: his eyes go fierce and sudden and he gets close to him. "My brother! Please, sir, you have to help Yuui! I don't care what happens to me, but... Yuui... please, save him!"

Yuuri sees how thin he is, how sunken the eyes despite the tears that are appearing and for one long moment he wishes he could find whoever did this, but he doesn't press upon his rage. Not the place, not the time.

Instead he makes himself smile as he puts a hand on the boy's shoulders, nodding a little.

"I'm here to save you _both_. What's your name?"

The boy's still trembling, both in shock and hopes and plain exhaustion, and Yuuri doesn't doubt anymore before he takes off his jacket, drapping it over bony shoulders, wishing that Wolfram was here so that he could help him keep this boy warm.

"F-fai..."

"Okay, Fai. Let's go and pick up Yuui, okay? And then we're getting outta here."

The boy takes the offered hand and Yuuri smiles at him before he does what the witch told him again – he thinks about the boys and how sad and his name is Yuui and --

"Yuui!"

Yuuri opens his eyes and he tries not to gag as he sees the corpses that are around. They're not decomposing, any of them, wide eyed and with the blood looking almost fresh. Fai let go of his hand the second he saw his brother, and Yuuri notices the small boy that's huddled over the snow for a moment before he launches himself to his brother's arms, sobbing and screaming in panic.

His heart aches and Yuuri waits by their side as both brothers cry, knowing the relief that comes through tears and if he wipes his eyes a little too much, well.

After a little while, when the tears have almost stopped and the brothers are holding unto each other's hands as tight as they can, Yuuri gets close to them again and he kneels by their side. It's kinda hard to be sure about their ages, but Yuuri can't wait until the moment where they're well fed and bathed and they actually smile. For now, he smiles for them both, as he introduces himself towards Yuui and he repeats that he's taking them both home.

"But we're dangerous!" Yuui says, as if hoping for something better was actually painful. "We're cursed! We brought bad luck to this whole country! I-it's our fault that..."

Fai swallows a little, holding Yuui's hand a little tighter and he, too, looks at Yuuri as if he wanted very much to say yes, but at the very same time wanted to say no.

"W-we can't be together... t-that's why we're here..."

So Yuuri stops trying to fool himself and he hugs them both. He feels the way they tense and he's reminded of Greta, the times when she used to do the same when he and Wolfram had just adopted her, unused at someone being kind to her, unused at someone caring so he keeps on holding them.

"I've never heard of something like that in Shin Makoku," he tells them both, doing his best to keep his voice cheery. "And even if there's something like that, I've got a whole bunch of people that's used to me causing mayhem every other day, so things will be alright. I mean, if you wanna."

He pulls a little back and sees wonder on their little faces, and Yuuri smiles again.

"I can't promise a lot of things, but I _can_ promise you that, in Shin Makoku, if you want to be together? I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe and happy."

He waits for a few moments as the brothers look at each other, mirror expressions on their faces that Yuuri would have to be blind to miss. They want so bad to believe him... so Yuuri offers them his hands and he grins.

"Let's go home."

Conviniently enough, they appear upon the bath: Yuui and Fai still gasp, shocked, clinging to him as the warm water bites upon their cold skins. Yuuri manages to hike one of them upon his back and the other one over his hip as he takes them to the side of the tub, not at all surprised when Conrad and Wolfram rush inside; the arms around his neck tighten, and Yuuri winces a little, but he reminds himself this is okay.

"Yuuri!" Wolfram glared a little, concern upon his face. "You've been gone for almost a week!"

"Sorry, sorry. Here, lemme introduce you. These," he says smiling, letting go of the twin in front of him to sit down, and then turning so that the other one can do the same, curling close again. "Are Fai and Yuui. Fai, Yuui, these are some of the people I told you make sure I don't do crazy things."

"And yet it never seems to work," Wolfram snorts, but he's taking off his jacket and then rolling up his sleeves, and he's smiling gently as he kneels by the twins' side. "I'm Wolfram. This idiot's fiancé."

"I'll ask one of the maids to bring some clothes for Fai and Yuui," Conrad says with the warmest smile he has, the smile that Yuuri is sure would make anyone trust him, and he's aiming it directly towards Fai and Yuui, who're looking wide eyed. "Is there any color in special you would like to wear?"

Both boys shake their heads no, and Conrad smiles, bowing a little before he steps out. Meanwhile, Wolfram has brought shampoo and soap, and he offers a hand to one of the twins.

"You are...?"

"Yuui," the boy says, taking his hand, but not letting go of Fai's.

Wolfram is still smiling the way he usually only does for Greta, when he lets himself be as sweet as Yuuri's sure he actually is, but he pretends he doesn't notice.

"Nice to meet you, Yuui. Would you let me heal you a little bit?"

"Oh, that's right. Is it okay with you, Fai, I can do the same."

"Wimp," Wolfram rolls his eyes: Yuuri sticks his tongue out before the twins look at each other again. Fai is the first one to nod, closing his eyes as if he was expecting it to hurt.

Gisela is going to want to look at them anyway, but at the very least Yuuri can start to help. He lets his maryoku flow, concentrating on the frostbitten fingers, on the little toes, on the scratches upon Fai's face. He hears Yuui mutter about feeling warm, and when he focuses again, Yuui's fingers aren't as red as before, and neither are Fai's.

He smiles and nods a little. "Alright! Now, it's time for you to get clean."

It takes about three hours from the moment that Yuuri arrived with the children to get them unto their room. Once he and Wolfram had helped the boys take a bath and dress upon pajamas that were a little too big on them, Gisela had, indeed, insisted upon checking them. They had eaten upon the infirmary, and it had broken Yuuri's heart the way the had devoured the light soup that Gisela assured them was what they could eat for a couple of days, until their stomaches got used to food again.

At the very least he hadn't been the only one: he had caught the way Wolfram's hands had tightened into fists, and Yuuri is certain that if the person that had put Fai and Yuui there were to be alive still, it wouldn't last for long.

"My older brother helped fix the room," Wolfram tells Yuui, whom he's carrying. The twins're obviously fighting to stay awake despite the fact the sun had just set, but Yuuri can't blame either of them for that. "We can change anything you don't like."

"If you decide to stay with us. You don't have to choose that today or anything," Yuuri says, smiling towards Fai, reaching for the door, but before he is able to, it opens wide with a beaming Greta standing in the middle of it

"Yuuri, Wolfram, I've been waiting!" Their daughter smiles like the sun as she takes upon Fai and Yuui, half bouncing. "Hi! I'm Greta, and I'm your older sister!"

"Greta, we're not sure of their ages."

Greta pouts a little. "It doesn't matter, I'm still your first daughter."

"Nice to meet you," Yuui says, Fai nodding, his greeting drowned by his yawning, which at least made Greta move from the door.

Though the room had, in fact, two beds set, with only a night table between them, Yuuri and Wolfram glance at each other before they go towards the same bed, both knowing from experience how comforting it is when you're scared and your brother is there to keep the nightmares away. Greta picks up one of her fairytale-Anissina-pattented books and she makes to sit by the bed' side.

"I'll read you my favorite so that you can have sweet dreams," she promises, smiling gently. Yuuri laughs a little, shaking his head, tucking the covers around them both, Wolfram leaning against the wall but smiling.

"D'you want anything else? Water?"

Both twins shake their heads no, but Yuui – he had the green nightgown, while Fai had a purple one – looks at him, as if expecting this to be a dream.

"... can we really stay here?"

"If you wanna, sure," Yuuri says, smiling, reaching to caress his hair a little. "No-one's gonna make you do something you don't want to do. If you don't want to be here, we'll find you a nice place to stay there. And if you wanna stay here..."

"I'll show you all the fun places, and I'll help you study!" Greta adds, smiling and excited. "And Lasagna usually gives me extra dessert, I'll tell her to give you some, too!"

"We'll also help you learn how to control your maryo-- your abilities," Wolfram says, his expression warm.

Both boys look overwhelmed, and Yuuri is sure that they're holding hands beneath the covers. He remembers how scared Greta was when she thought that they might, somehow, make her leave, and he can see that fear still deep inside Fai and Yuui's eyes.

Before he can say anything, Wolfram goes to the empty bed and sits down, shrugging at his look.

"I want to hear the story too," it's all that he says.

Yuuri smiles as Greta turns towards him, nodding before he goes to sit down as well. Greta starts reading, sweet and kind, and the twins that have been haunting his nightmares for over two weeks are finally safe.

It's all going to work out, one way or the other. Yuuri's sure of that.


	2. Chapter 2 When things seem

**(A/N)**WOO! Time for the second chapter, and my actual role in the story. ^.^ I warn you now, I'm not the kind of writer the lovely miss Cephirot is, I'm a much darker artist. *smirks* So, let's get this started, shall we? Heh heh heh…

**But One of Many**

**Pairings: **Kurofai, Yuuram, Syoasaku, light GwendalGunter, and JosakConrart.

**Warnings:** AU, Yaoi, dark plot lines, and awesomeness!

**Description:** Things seem to be teeming within Shin Makoku, and indeed, the whole world beyond the veil. It seems strange… and Yuuri doesn't know what he can do to help.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Kyo Kara Maou, nor Tsubasa. If I did, there'd be lots of crossovers. LOTS.

**But One of Many – Chapter Two –**_ When things seem at their worst…_

Yuri sighed, the paperwork shifting on his desk. He didn't like it… The more he went through the more there was, and all of it seemed to be relating to natural disasters. Crops withering in perfect weather, lakes and rivers drying up for no apparent reason, creatures that no one had ever seen before popping up out of no where…

If he was a superstitious sort, he'd say that maybe, just maybe, the witch had been right, and something had happened to the veil around their world. He hadn't been back home in a while, and couldn't help but wonder if Earth was having this same issue… He worried. Were his mother and father alright?

"Stop thinking so hard. You'll scare the kids." Wolfram's voice sounded from the door, and though he'd normally have his hands crossed across his chest, they were down by his side, one pale, skinny hand in each of his own tanned ones. Yuuri smiled at the sight of the twins. Their long hair had been braided by their 'sister' Greta. They seemed happy to have it away from their faces, and he was once again startled by how very BLUE their eyes were.

"Yuui, Fai! How are you two doing today, hm?" He asked, standing up behind his desk, which in turn, nearly toppled over a huge stack of paperwork. The twins giggled as Yuuri struggled to keep it, and himself, from falling over. They still didn't laugh quite as often as he'd hoped, and they seemed almost scared to smile, but it was improvement, and Yuuri would take any he could get!

Yuui looked to Fai, and they nodded, as if checking something in tandem with each other. "We're doing well, Yuuri-heika…" He murmured. It was strange, but Yuui seemed to be the more vocal of the two twins. They were very curious kids, and so, within weeks of arriving, they'd quickly taken a liking to the king, and loved to hang around his office, absorbing the language, and the writing of this new world.

They didn't speak of how they were put into that hell, and Yuuri didn't want to bug them about it, seeing as they seemed very saddened by it. Wolfram had only managed to figure out that they were princes back on their own world. But other than that, they wouldn't talk. Not about their family, not about their culture. Nothing.

Yuui explained it away as they were more interested in their new home, not their old one. Unlike Greta, these two weren't active children, preferring to spend their time in the library to running around like regular children. It was… almost strange.

And it didn't help that every time Wolfram went near them, he almost felt like his own Maryoku was going to go out of control, his firey soul overflowing in their presence. He'd had to spend a day meditating just to figure out that it wasn't his imbalance, but rather an imbalanced caused by the two's presence. He'd immediately began teaching them magic, just to make sure they didn't go out of control, and destroy Blood Pledge Castle.

They seemed to enjoy it however. It was almost like… the more they used their magic, the stronger it got. Wolfram NEVER wanted to go up against the twins when they were full grown. NEVER. However, though he hated himself for thinking this, he was definitely glad they were only human. He would outlive them…

This of course, brought another worry to mind… He would outlive Yuuri too… He bit down on his lip, watching Yuuri show the two how he signed his paperwork, clamping down on thoughts like that, and enjoying the moment.

FAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAI

On another world entirely, a man cursed in the darkness, his eyes locked onto a dark mirror held in what looked like the claws of some great beast of ancient darkness. But he was watching something much farther away. A world shrouded in cold snow, the ancient, and wondrous land of Valeria, once ruled by an emperor, who, in a fit of insanity, slew his entire country.

Dammit… The prizes he'd sought weren't there. Twin beacons of magic, locked away, and now… They were free, and gone from that world. He sighed, not bothering to look for them elsewhere. Wherever they went misfortune was sure to follow. After all, Valerian twins were cursed.

Instead, he turned his attention to another world, the scene shifting within the mirror, to a peaceful world, where magic and physical strength ruled supreme. There, two fateful people were meeting for the very first time… A long-maned beauty, and a short-haired young man. He watched as their eyes widened with surprise, and a blush stained the beautiful maiden's face.

THIS would be his weapon then…

FAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAI

The dimension witch sighed, swirling the sake in her cup, her gaze on the moon. Soon… Soon the threads woven so long ago by herself and her companion would spring into action, and all of this… would be gone. Soon, her successor would spring to the fore, and she would disappear from this world, joining _him_ in the after life.

She only hoped she could make sure those children had a happy life… Otherwise, this will all have been for nought…

Taking another drink, she smiled, as Maru and Moro brought her another bottle of vintage sake, and she took a deep breath. She would have to be prepared for the worst, and for heartache beyond what she wanted…

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Time passed, days turned into months, and years, before anyone realized… Adventures came and went within Shin Makoku. Yuuri turned from a young boy into a true maou, a demon king to be proud of. Though his dream of world peace didn't come to pass, as he wished, for wars did happen, and unfortunately, even Shin Makoku had to be involved in a few. However, he succeeded in creating the worlds largest peace treaty, with over seventy nations, and another WORLD signing.

But all was not well… As the twins grew, strangely at the same rate as the demon's own children, disasters struck, around the world. Hurricanes destroying whole coastlines. Strange, unknown monsters appearing and ravaging the country side. Plagues appearing that seemed to have nothing at all to do with proper care or medicine.

And all the time, the temperature seemed to drop. The world got colder, and colder, the winters longer, and longer. The people began to freeze, began to starve from lack of grown food, even deserts began to feel snow and ice.

Day after day the twins grew bigger, stronger, more magical, and whispers deep in the belly of the court spoke, saying that maybe… just maybe they DID bring misfortune… Maybe it was THEIR fault…

Yuuri spoke with Ulrike, Murata, any wise person he could find in the world, attempted to find reason or rhyme why this was happening, why his calm world was going to hell in an iced-over basket. He didn't understand… And neither did anyone else.

The castle was becoming exhausted, importing food that kept getting more and more expensive, spreading it to the peasants, and barely managing to keep any for themselves. Already into their teen years, Yuui and Fai worried, constantly, and it was only when Yuuri brought it to their attention, that they said anything.

Again, they shared a worried, blue-eyed look, and asked, if maybe… they should leave. Yuuri seemed furious with the idea, slamming his fists down into the table.

"NO! You are my children, as much as Greta is, and I will NOT have you think that any of this is your fault!" Yuuri yelled, before his face softened. "Do NOT think that this is your fault." He smiled, "It was my choice, to go get you. MINE. And I would do it, again, and again, and again. NO one deserves what you two were put through…" Black eyes bore into the blue eyes of his sons, and his hands touched one cheek for each boy.

Fai started first, sniffling, before both of them broke down into tears and hugged the king. Wolfram smiled on them, sighing lightly. He was still only Yuuri's fiancé, but the world recognized him as his consort, no matter what Yuuri might say. He was happy with that, and happy with the life Yuuri had given him.

It was that day the twins cut their hair short, and, with a vow to return, began travelling across the country, attempting to use their magic to relieve some of the stress on the world. Warming parts of the world responsible for growing crops. Fertility spells for the animals, that they could reproduce quickly, providing food for humans.

They were thanked wherever they went, and everyone knew the magicians to be the Maou's sons, dressed in pure white.

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On another world, where time passed faster, the young beauty was now a mother, married to the proud young man she'd met that day. He was a lord, and she, a lady, a priestess, upholding a barrier to keep the oni from overrunning humankind.

But… There was something wrong… Some poison in their world that kept interfering with her barrier, and with herself. Upon her son's fifth birthday, she collapsed, unable to leave her bed. For a week, she lay weak, unable to maintain the barrier, and so, her husband, the only leader their warriors had, could not stay by her side.

After the week, she feigned feeling better, hugging her son tightly, and throwing herself into the barrier once again, to protect those she loved.

Within a month, her son heard her scream, slamming into her prayer-room, only to find her nearly dead, and a sword through her long, pale throat. It was a long, wickedly sharp sword, with the symbol of a strange butterfly-like creature upon it. A hand was attached to that sword, and so, was pulled back through a hole in the wall, that seemed to lead somewhere else entirely.

He ran forward, cradling his mother close to him. She was bleeding, and a gurgle sounded in the back of her throat. Her hand lifted, shaking, and touched his cheek, leaving a bloody handprint there.

Outside, chaos reigned as the barrier shattered, the beasts outside raining in on the helpless servants and farmers. The young son of the lord bit his lip, letting his mother lay, before heading out to defend his home. He snatched up a sword, any sword he could find. It was the beast's sword, and strangely, it fit in his hand…

He charged out, only to stop moving altogether upon spotting something that made his blood run cold. In the mouth of one of the deadly dragons, was an arm… Holding his father's sword… He shook… His body aching with rage.

Everything was blood and darkness for a while… He remembered pain, but he didn't know how much was his… and how much was what he inflicted. When he was awoken, he had his father's sword in his hand, and his mother's head in his lap, and a girl's soft arms around him, her words soothing. Before he knew it, tears were pouring from his eyes, and he was sobbing like a child.

FAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAI

Years found that sobbing child a cold young man. Aching for revenge, he didn't know what to do… He trained, and trained, and didn't know if there was any way to find out who killed his mother. Who caused her death, and who was breaking their barrier.

He would have attempted to become a priest, just to see if he could find out, but… He growled when he found he had no magical aptitude. That didn't stop him from attempting to learn the arts anyway. He studied, even if it came to no end. He also studied the ninja arts.

He would be ready when that bastard showed back up again. And he WOULD gain his revenge. In the meantime, he'd strengthen his skills on everyone else.

FAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAIYUUIFAI

Yuuri was at his wits end. The food supplies were gone… Nothing was working right… All over the world people were dying of starvation. Whole buildings were beginning to freeze over. But… Beyond anything else, the strangeness wasn't that the BUILDINGS were freezing, but rather that PEOPLE were freezing over.

They were freezing over, and just like Wolfram had, they seemed to have their hearts frozen, and were simply sleeping. No matter what magic was used, they wouldn't wake up. Not even the Wincott poison worked.

Gunter was constantly nervous now, his body shaking. He couldn't stand for Gisella to be far away from him, as in, three rooms. Even stranger, at least to Yuuri, he wouldn't leave a room that Gwendal was in, either.

One day, curiosity got the better of him, and he had to ask. Wolfram blinked round green eyes, before laughing. He laughed for a good ten minutes, while Yuuri got more and more annoyed. Finally, when he managed to come down, he wiped away tears, before smirking, "Damn whimp! They're MARRIED." He laughed.

Yuuri blushed, and decided not to speak on it again.

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Princess Tomoyo was frowning, her eyes sad, but warm, as she shook her head. "I can't allow this to happen any longer, Kurogane… Any more deaths…." She sighed, looking up at him, before looking away. "And I will be forced to punish you. I really wish you would learn more respect for life." She sighed, before waving a delicate hand, and dismissing him.

He stepped out of the incense clouded, tinkling sanctuary of the priestess of Tsukiyomi, growling. How DARE she tell him what to do! He was protecting her! Nothing more! It wasn't as if her other gaurds were competent enough to actually do any damage! He sighed, moving up into his favorite place, the roof. It seemed the most peaceful there, the moon shining down on him, along with the stars, and the wind growing lightly.

Kurogane closed his eyes for a moment, contemplating his life for the last decade or so... It was almost as if he'd been… wasting time. Waiting for something. Nothing seemed real here, and nothing would ever seem real, he assumed, until he avenged his parent's deaths.

"I can help you…" A voice purred in the darkness, and Kurogane's eyes opened. A circle in time and space seemed to open up, a shiny mirror, and on the other side was a man. A pale man with dark hair shot through with silver bolts of age. His beard and chin denoted him as something other than oriental. A monocle sat on his nose, and he had the kind of self-satisfied smirk that Kurogane found horrifically annoying.

"Buzz off." He growled. He wasn't in the mood to be played by some random mage.

"Alright… but the Butterfly will not wait forever. Her plans range on and on…" He sighed, and turned away from the mirror.

"WAIT!"

Kurogane bolted forward, his crimson eyes fierce and utterly sure. "Tell me… You know who killed my mother?!" He demanded.

"Of course… And I can help you get your revenge…."

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It happened while they were sleeping… Nothing they could do would fix it…

They'd come home, just for a moment, to rest from their travels. Yuui was even quieter than he used to be, and Fai seemed withdrawn as well. Yuuri and Wolfram tried to cheer them up, even though they were dealing with their own loss, Greta having frozen long ago, her adolescent beauty frozen in time. Gwendal and Gunter had been lost the night before.

The entire Blood Pledge castle was frozen over, cold and pale now, and Yuui and Fai sat with their adoptive parents fighting off the cold by sipping at hot mulled wine. No one knew what would happen next, but, rather than settling into sorrow at their world dying, they settled together, and smiled, just letting the memories flow.

Wolfram tried to be strong, but the wine, and the night was falling on him, and he roared in fear and pain and worry. He through a chair across the room, screamed, cried. He dragged Yuui and Fai into sobbing too, and in the end, Yuuri pulled everyone into a hug, his body aching to protect them, his voice saying small prayers he'd learned as a child.

In the end, they parted ways, and went to sleep. That night Wolfram didn't kick, and Yuuri latched onto his nightgowned fiancé, and for the first time in his long life in that world, he told Wolfram that he loved him.

The ice encroached closer, covering the king and his love. And in the morning, the twins woke to yet another dead world. This time, it was Yuui who was strong, tearing his tearful brother from the bed, dragging him to the courtyard.

"We can do this… We can save them, Fai…" He breathed. "There has to be a way. Lets go to her. She'll be able to tell us."

Yuui nodded, and the two clasped hands, their foreheads touching, reaching for the magic deep inside them.

It was time to see the Dimensional witch.

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Worlds away, a princess's heart scattered to the winds. Soldiers attacked ruins, and another soldier was sent into the fray with the princess' cold body pressed to his chest. He hoped to the gods that he could save his love, his one, his only.

What in the world would he do without her?

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"Kurogane… I'm sorry." She murmured, as her ninja sunk into the floor, struggling with all his might. It was insane, and she was near to crying, as he cursed her. "I'm sorry… This rune… will bind your strength. For every life you take… you will become weaker." She explained, touching his forehead, leaving behind a gentle red glowing rune.

"Be safe… and find your way home to me…" She smiled.

Kurogane cursed her, even though he knew, in his mind, everything was going as planned.

End Chapter

Otaku: Whew! Thank god that's over. XD

Fai: Why am *I* the outgoing one? *points to Yuui* HE'S the one in the show! I'm supposed to be DEAD!

Yuui: *nods*

Otaku: Hah. That's because I think Yuui is cute as a gentle person. ^.^ That, and it gives me something to work with later. XD

On to the night!


End file.
